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The Best London Cocktail Bars

As with everything featured within the Nudge hitlists, this small guide to the best London cocktail bars is nothing more than a humble collection of our favourites.

It is, however, a collection of favourites which – by happy coincidence – doubles up as a more definitive and trustworthy list of the best London cocktail bars than you’re likely to find anywhere else.

Price; ambience; location; vibe and staff.

None of these factors were given our direct consideration at any point at all. However they were all there – bubbling uncontrollably beneath the surface – as we diligently, and instantly, reacted to the command,

Nightjar is a bona fide speakeasy, complete with candlelight, conspiratorial whisperings, rose-tinted mirrors, leather chairs, nightly live jazz and award-winning cocktails served in everything from hand-hollowed stones to bundles carried by a large model stork. It’s also a bona fide contender for the best bar in London. READ MORELike this? Try… their sister bar in Smithfield, OrioleDetails: 129 City Road, EC1V 1JB | Open daily–

A shimmering silver-laced vault hidden round the back of the Connaught Hotel, the bar here has consistently been voted into the top 5 in the world. The reasons for which will become abundantly clear upon taking a secluded booth, catching the eye of the smartly dressed barkeeps, and watching as the bespoke martini trolley is rolled over to you, with its customisable array of tinctures, garnishes and spirits… READ MORELike this? Try… The Library Bar at The Ned, who also have a martini trolley stacked with vintage spirits.Details: Connaught Hotel, Carlos Place, W1K 2AL | Open daily–

A Belle Epoque-era cocktail tavern; where drinks arrive enveloped in smoke and served in an array of curious and unusual vessels. The cocktail menu hops through time, filled with excerpts from various historical texts as well as the drinks themselves – including one aged in a parmigiano reggiano barrel. And as the lovechild of two former Nightjar and Connaught barkeeps, it behoves every inch its pedigree. READ MORELike this? Try… TT Liquor, a bar in an old police station with a similarly time-travelling menuDetails: 44 Old Street, EC1V 9AQ | Open daily–

An achingly glamorous underground warren, cloaked in velvet, brass and mirrors and home to some of the city’s more unusual cocktails. The menu is written entirely in the form of short stories, allowing you to choose a drink based on character rather than ingredients… READ MORELike this? Try… The Bletchley, an interactive bar where cocktails are created based on your personalityDetails: 4 Kingly Street, W1F 9BW | Open daily–

Quite literally the birthplace of some of the world’s most famous cocktails. Legendary bartender Harry Craddock compiled his creations (Corpse Reviver #2, White Lady, etc.) into the Savoy’s 1930 cocktail book here, alongside a number of other perfected classics – and they make them with just as much panache almost a century later. READ MORELike this? Try… Dukes, another classic hotel bar with significant heritage, as the spot where James Bond – and his martini – were born.Details: The Savoy, Strand, WC2R 0EZ | Open daily–

More lab than cocktail bar, Scout is the brainchild of acclaimed mixologist Matt Whiley, whose low-waste philosophy and focus on innovation has won him plaudits across the globe. Here, you’ll sip drinks made with wood ants and miso caramel paired with seasonal dishes made with foraged ingredients, before heading downstairs for a taste of his keg-aged cocktails… READ MORELike this? Try… Cub, a cocktail-restaurant from master mixologist Ryan ChetiyawardanaDetails: 224 Graham Road, E8 1BP | Open Tues-Sat–

A neighbourhood bar like this really is one of life’s little mercies. Set up by former Scout bar manager Alan Sherwood (with a little help from the Venning brothers at Three Sheets), it’s a friendly, totally unpretentious, but unequivocally cool spot in Crouch End, serving perfectly balanced cocktails made with painstakingly treated ingredients. Try the Old Fashioned with caramelised white chocolate, or the crystal clear martini made with avocado leaf cordial… READ MORELike this? Try… Behind This Wall, a hidden bar with small batch distillates, botanicals, and dancingDetails: 20 Broadway Parade, N8 9DE |Open Wed-Sun–

Artesian: In The Nudge’s Best London Cocktail Bars Hitlist. Also, on a side note, crowned as The World’s Best Bar by Drinks International three years running. READ MORELike this? Try… The Fumoir at Claridges, another top-shelf, art deco hotel bar with slick cocktailsDetails: Langham Hotel, 1C Portland Place, W1B 1JA | Open daily–

A Bethnal Green bar cramped between newsagents, mini-cab offices and strip clubs, with taxidermy on the walls and an illuminated icebox on the bar full of sliced tropical fruits. Order the Champs Elysées with Cognac and green Chartreuse, and soak up the hip hop soundtrack. READ MORELike this? Try… Happiness Forgets: let happiness remember, at this secret underground cocktail bar in Shoreditch.
Details:343 Cambridge Heath Road, E2 9RA | Open daily–

A Bethnal Green cocktail bar inspired by the rich culture and history of New Orleans’ French Quarter, with period fittings and a regular line-up of live bands – that also serves a multi-award winning sazerac. READ MORELike this? Try… Kansas Smitty’s, a nearby bar specifically opened for the KS band to play in
Details:107 Roman Road, E2 0QN | Open Wed-Sat from 5pm, Sun 12-4 and 5pm-midnight–

A small, intimate room of 1950s Italian furnishings and top tier cocktails from drinks virtuoso Tony Conigliaro. And yes, this bar has no name;perfect for when you don’t know where to go. READ MORELike this? Try… Untitled, TC’s other unnamed bar, covered entirely in tinfoil
Details:69 Colebrooke Row, N1 8AA | Open daily from 5pm-late–

Lyaness comes to you from the revered Ryan Chetiyawardana, and replaces his bar Dandelyan – which raked in three awards at last year’s Tales of the Cocktail, and currently (though closed…) ranks top in the World’s 50 Best Bars list. And it’ll no doubt win itself an equally impressive heft of plaudits, thanks to its glamorous baby blue interiors, floor to ceiling views across the Thames, and the new menu – which is nothing short of cocktail wizardry. READ MORELike this? Try… Heads + Tails, a neighbourhood cocktail den with two different personalities
Details:Sea Containers London, 20 Upper Ground, SE1 9PD | Open daily–

There’s a lot packed into this tiny Coupette. Not just another exposed-brick toting bar in East London, it sports a genuinely intimate atmosphere, where low-hanging lighting’s reflected by the coppery sheen of the bar made up of hundreds of 10 Franc coins. That’s no coincidence, because the drinks list here – curated by ex-Beaufort Bar head Chris Moore – has a strong Gallic influence, with cocktails inspired by French cultural “muses” and underappreciated inebriants like calvados and poiré… READ MORELike this? Try… Original Sin, a brick-walled basement with its own pool tableDetails: 423 Bethnal Green Road, E2 0AN | Open daily–

A soothingly pared back, unpretentious Dalston cocktail bar where the menu has only three sections, which in turn have three drinks. This means that every drink on that menu is pretty much the Platonic ideal of that drink, having had weeks of assiduous experimentation and testing gone into its preparation. Thankfully, they rotate regularly, too – so you’ve the perfect excuse to come back again and again. READ MORELike this? Try… Bar Three, their follow-up in the basement of Blixen in Spitalfields MarketDetails: 510b Kingsland Road, E8 4AE | Open daily 5pm-12.45am–

The most sumptuous and intriguing of all London cocktail bars: packed with curios and oddities, it’s a den of lived in luxury, home to Matt Whiley cocktails, taxidermied animals, and a coterie of contented drinkers… READ MORELike this? Try… the Clarendon Cocktail Cellar, another cosy gem beneath a boutique hotelDetails: 49-50 St John’s Square, Clerkenwell, EC1V 4JJ | Open daily